NA TURE 



[July i8, 1907 



of vertebrate teratology recently studied by him, and Prof. 

 A. B. Macalluni, F.R.S., described some new cells with 

 protruding tail-like processes occurring in the mesogloea 

 of Aurelia and other Medusae. 



The popular evening lecture, which is always an 

 important feature of the Canadian Royal Society's annual 

 meeting, was delivered to a crowded assembly in the large 

 hall of the Normal School by Prof. Ernest Rutherford. 

 The subject was " Recent Results of Researches on 

 Radium." In a graphic manner, the lecturer explained 

 his famous " disintegration " theory, the transformation 

 of chemical elements, the marvellous phenomena of radiant 

 matter, and illustrated his remarks by striking experiments. 

 He aroused much interest by stating' that in Canada there 

 were probably more rocks containing radium than in any 

 other territory on the globe, and he had found, bv suspend- 

 ing a wire in the open air in Montreal during a shower of 

 rain, that radium collected on the wire. Many brilliant 

 social functions took place during the meetings,' including 

 a large garden party by Dr. and Mrs. Saunders at their 

 official residence ; dinners given by the president-elect. Dr. 

 S. E. Dawson ; luncheons by Sir James Grant, former 

 president ; and other entertainments. 



THE ROYAL VISIT TO THE UNIVERSITY 

 COLLEGE OF NORTH WALES. 

 JN last week's Nature, a short account was given of the 

 visit of the King and Queen to Bangor to lav the 

 foundation stone of the new buildings of the University 

 Ct)llege of North Wales. A few particulars relating to the 

 origin and work of the college, and some thoughts suggested 

 by speeches made at last week's ceremony, may be of 

 mterest as a supplement to the report that has already 

 appeared. , 



The University College of North Wales was founded in 

 1884, and is at present located in the buildings of the 

 former Penrhyn Arms Hotel. It has been enlarged by the 

 addition of laboratories and lecture rooms for the" faculty of 

 science, which includes departments of agriculture 'and 

 electrical engineering. The former was the first institution 

 of Its kind in Great Britain, and has been adopted as the 

 model of similar agricultural departments started elsewhere. 

 Its operations have been extended bv the foundation in 

 igo4 of a school of forestry under the auspices of the Board 

 of Agriculture, one of two in the United Kingdom. The 

 electrical engineering department is maintained by an 

 annual grant from the Drapers' Company. If its resources 

 in the matter of equipment have not been on a lavish scale, 

 the training it has afforded has been of a high character 

 and has probably possessed advantages which an over- 

 elabcrate plant might not afTord. Stil'l, much apparatus is 

 badly needed before the condition of maximum efficiency 

 can be reached. Another feature is the fisheries depart- 

 ment, which has performed useful work in developing the 

 fishing industry of North Wales, an industry which is 

 capable of being greatly developed by ihe dififusion of 

 practical scientific knowledge in the fishing districts. 

 Although the present notice necessarily deals primarily with 

 the scientific aspect of the work of' the college, allusion 

 must be made to the day training department, the courses 

 in secondary education, and the facilities for kindergarten 

 training afforded by the establishment of a preparatory 

 school under the auspices of the college. 



The new college will consist, when finished, of two 

 quadrangles. At present it is only intended to erect the 

 arts and administrative buildings,' and it is to be hoped 

 that by the time this has been done the building fund will 

 admit of the science buildings being commenced. The 

 library is very inadequately housed, and when we point out 

 that only about lol. a year is available for the purchase 

 of books in such a subject as pure and applied mathematics 

 combined, physics or chemistry, it will be seen that the 

 present college staff is doing good work under difficulties 

 which would not exist in a similar institution in Germany 

 or America. 



At the public luncheon, the Right Hon. D. Llovd George, 

 M.P., gave some interesting statistics showing the 

 liberality and enlhusiasm of the people of North Wales in 

 matters relating to education. The contributions for uni- 



NO. 1968, VOL. 76] 



versity and technical education are six times, and to 

 secondary education nine times, as high as in England, and 

 th'! contributions of the town and suburbs of Bangor to the 

 college alone represent the proportional equivalent of a 

 sum which for a town of the size of Liverpool and its 

 suburbs works out to 1,750,000/. In regard to the question 

 of Government assistance, Mr. Lloyd George thought that 

 waiting for Governments was like waiting for sunshine, 

 and that the college afforded a grand opportunity for a 

 millionaire to earn gratitude and fame. 



But where is Mr. Lloyd George going to find his mil- 

 lionaire? A country which raises a protective tariff against 

 millionaires in the form of death duties is scarcely a 

 promising field. When we take account of the heavy losses 

 North Wales has sustained by the death of a number of 

 its most influential and prominent landowners during the 

 last decade, the progress of the new college buildings will 

 be found to represent a widespread feeling of munificence 

 and loyalty towards the cause of higher national education 

 far in advance of anything that exists in America. But in 

 the race between British and .\merican universities. Great 

 Britain is heavily handicapped, with the result that, in 

 spite of all the efforts we are putting forward, we are 

 rapidly falling further and further behind. The inevitable 

 result is that the responsibilities which the acquisition of 

 wealth entails will be pressed more and more heavily every 

 year on our (iovernments, and unless they can supply the 

 extra few rays of sunshine we shall be less and less abl- 

 every year to raise up the intellectual produce necessary t" 

 enable us to compete with the foreign producer. 



The problem was solved long ago for Germany by her 

 system of State universities. That Germany owes her 

 national prosperity in no small measure to the principle of 

 Lehrfrciheit, which has been adopted as the fundamental 

 law governing the relations of the university professors with 

 the .StaTe, is a fart which every German citizen knows well. 

 It is no trifling thing to say that there is probably not a 

 single university college in the LInited Kingdom the council 

 and senate of which are more thoroughly imbued with the 

 spirit of the German ideal than the University College of 

 North Wales. In the large industrial centres of South 

 Wales there exists an unfortunate conflict of rival 

 factions, and it is sad to notice that many people only 

 associate themselves with university education in order to 

 acquire a cheap reputation by belittling the academic 

 element, making unjustified and vexatious attacks on its 

 representatives, and hampering the progress of the nation 

 whose interests they falsely profess to have at heart. We 

 refer in particular to the state of affairs which culminated 

 some years ago in the premature death of the late Principal 

 Viriamu Jones, and has continued to exist ever since. 

 In North Wales the ardent Welsh nationalist, and the 

 scientific worker who believes that " he is the greatest 

 patriot who has the world for his nation," all realise that 

 they are working together for a common cause. 



G. H. Bryan. 



THE ALD.ROVANDI CELEBRATIONS 

 BOLOGNA. 



AT 



TT is not improbable that some of the delegates appointed 

 to represent foreign universities and learned societies 

 at the tercentenary of the death of Ulissc Aldrovandi 

 {1522-1607) were insufficiently acquainted with the works, 

 of this great naturalist to appreciate thoroughly the 

 importance of the occasion. The international gathering 

 at Bologna (June 11-13) has been the means of rescuing 

 from partial obscurity the memory of one of the many 

 pioneers in the study of nature which Italy has produced. 

 Bologna, the birthplace of universities and the alma mater 

 of not a few students whose names occupy a prominent 

 place in the history of the natural sciences, is an ideal 

 meeting place of the nations to do homage to one of the 

 fathers of scientific investigation. The numerous coats 

 of arms which decorate the walls of the old university 

 buildings bear witness to the hospitality of Bologna to 

 students from all parts of the world, and the celebration 

 which has now been brought to a successful conclusion 

 testifies to the continuance of a spirit of hospitality after 

 the lapse of centuries. 



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